


Do I dare disturb the universe?

by wasneeliw



Series: Tales of Boyhood [2]
Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Force-Sensitive Chirrut Îmwe, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Origin Story, Protective Baze, Whump
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-19
Updated: 2017-03-19
Packaged: 2018-10-07 18:22:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 608
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10366650
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wasneeliw/pseuds/wasneeliw
Summary: For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.Young Chirrut rescues Baze and suffers the consequences.OrA sad excuse for Chirrut whump





	

Storms on Jedha were brutal and anyone could tell this one would end with hail. Rushing through the downpour, Baze almost missed the small figure standing outside the temple entrance. He squinted through the rain.

"You again! Are you crazy?"

Baze was getting soaked through but he barely noticed. The boy's drenched robes clung to his small frame but he continued standing at attention. Baze pulled at his arm but he wouldn't budge, determined to remain.

"What's your problem?"

"None of your business," the boy grit out.

"You idiot, you'll get yourself killed!"

"Go away, you'll get me expelled!"

When the first of the hail fell, Baze decided to drag him bodily into shelter. Propriety be damned, he wrapped his arms forcibly around the smaller boy. The moment Baze made contact, the boy's back arched and there was a sharp intake of air. His eyes rolled back and Baze caught his limp body instinctively.

"Hey, hey, what's wr-"

The question died in his throat as he noticed that the boy's robes were ripped and torn. He didn't stir when Baze shook him, and the larger boy felt him burning with fever. Carefully, he peeled open the seams of the fabric, gasping when he saw the ravaged flesh. Some of the injures were at least a day old and the rest were clearly fresh. A lattice of open wounds and blood. Panic seized Baze and he ran up the temple steps with the apprentice in his arms.

He had never run faster in his life.

The evening chants had began when Baze came crashing into the hall. The guardians froze in shock at the unspeakably rude interruption, but the rudeness was instantly forgotten when they took in the sight of their youngest apprentice. The closest scrambled to help, prayer beads abandoned.

"No one is to move! Resume the prayers." An authoritative voice sliced through the chaos.

"But Chirrut-" an apprentice protested.

"Hush. Apprentices must learn the consequences of violating the code."

A moment of heavy silence followed after the Head Elder spoke.

"So you whipped him half to death and left him in a hailstorm?" Baze shouted.

"Chirrut Imwe used his divine gifts to challenge street thugs, acting like a street thug himself! He's a disgrace to our holy profession! He should count himself fortunate that I didn't excommunicate him outright."

Baze gaped in horror as fragments of understanding fell in place.

"He was only protecting me!"

"He is a Guardian of the Temple, not of Man."

"You'll kill him!"

"We have no use for insolent rebels."

Chirrut's hitching breaths became painfully audible in the silence of the hall. Some guardians looked at their Elder defiantly but helplessly. Most had their eyes fixed on the unconscious boy. He was pale and unmoving, and anyone could tell that his robes were more crimson than they should have been.

"I beg to differ." All heads turned to the soft voice of a petite woman beside the Head Elder.

"The force is strong with these two. I can feel it. Alone, Chirrut is extraordinary, but paired with this one here..."

"...You'll never find better Guardians," another Elder finished.

There were murmurs of assent.

The Head Guardian gazed meaningfully at Baze and the boy he protectively held close. Chirrut's head was nestled against Baze's neck and for the first time, everyone saw not only Chirrut the warrior but the child. Even the Head Elder's expression softened slightly, but Baze interrupted him before he could speak.

"I'll join your bloody Order and guard your fucking gate if you save him."

It remains to date the most vulgar oath ever inscribed on the temple records.

**Author's Note:**

> title shamelessly stolen from T.S Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock".  
> comments and writing prompts greatly appreciated! 
> 
> my tumblr: spiritassassin0


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